We are very sorry to announce that our CEO Sam Barber will leave the BDFA at the end of June as her first year’s contract ends. During her time with us, Sam has done an exceptional job in challenging circumstances. She has worked absolutely tirelessly on all aspects of managing the charity and supporting families, particularly through the NICE process. Her professionalism, dedication and energy have been outstanding. We wish Sam all the best for her future.

The decision is purely financially driven. We have revised our strategy in line with a stripped down budget and the detail of this will be shared at our meeting in Manchester on the 18th May. We will be restructuring the leadership of the BDFA in line with our budget and will announce details of this as soon as possible. It is likely that we will have a gap in leadership when the board will manage the BDFA, including our involvement in the NICE process.

We appreciate this will come as a shock to families and please be reassured we are committed to securing the future of the BDFA going forward.